Film still from The Loving Story.
Happy Valentine’s Day.
Valentine’s Day is a holiday celebrated every February 14 across the United States and other places worldwide. The usual marks of the holiday are highlighted with candy, flowers, and gifts exchanged between loved ones. While the origins of Valentine’s Day may be more historical and religious in nature, we use this day to show our appreciation and love for those around us: family, friends, significant others, and even our pets. Here are a few docs suggested by IDA Staff to watch this holiday weekend in the name of love.
The Loving Story (2011)
A largely archival film about the quiet yet courageous interracial couple who challenged miscegenation laws all the way to the Supreme Court. Directed by Nancy Buirski.
Where to Watch: Max.com
The Lovers and the Despot (2016)
A stranger-fiction true story about an estranged couple who end up captured and imprisoned in North Korea and forced to make films together for Kim Jong-il. Directed by Robert Cannan and Ross Adam.
Where to Watch: Prime Video
Cutie and the Boxer (2013)
The complex story of the long and complicated marriage of two artists exploring their individual and joint identities. Directed by Zachary Heinzerling.
Where to Watch: Prime Video
No Sex Last Night (Double Blind) (1996)
French Artist Sophie Calle and American Photographer Greg Shephard’s autobiographical account of their road trip across America. Both hide behind their cameras as they make the mythical journey westward from New York to California in Greg’s troubling convertible. Directed by Sophie Calle and Greg Shephard.
Where to Watch: YouTube
Fire of Love (2022)
Intrepid scientists and lovers Katia and Maurice Krafft die in a volcanic explosion doing the very thing that brought them together: unraveling the mysteries of volcanoes by capturing some of nature’s most explosive imagery. Directed by Sara Dosa.
Where to Watch: Disney+
Lessons from a Calf (1991)
Kore-eda’s first film follows an elementary school class as they raise a dairy cow named Laura. This documentary captures their curiosity and enthusiasm as they care for her over the course of a year and become increasingly attached to their bovine specimen. When it is time to send Laura back to the farm, the film ends with a resonant final evocation of loss. Directed by Kore-eda Hirokazu.
Where to Watch: YouTube
Homework (1989)
In Abbas Kiarostami’s second documentary feature about education, the filmmaker himself asks the questions, probing a succession of invariably cute first- and second-graders about their home situations and the schoolwork they must do there. It emerges that many parents are illiterate. Tellingly, many kids can define punishment (the corporal variety seems common) but not encouragement. Directed by Abbas Kiarostami.
Where to Watch: Criterion Channel